Biden visits Iraq after U.S. troops pull back

BAGHDAD -- U.S. Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. arrived in Iraq yesterday to visit American soldiers, just two days after all U.S. combat troops withdrew from Baghdad and all of Iraq's cities and towns.

Biden will meet with Iraqi leaders, including President Jalal Talabani and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

A White House statement said Biden will reiterate the U.S. commitment to carry out President Barack Obama's plan to withdraw combat forces. He also will press Iraqi leaders to make more progress toward political reconciliation.

In Washington, Obama said he always has reserved the right to adjust the U.S. troop-withdrawal timetable in Iraq based on changing circumstances. But he said he was confident the U.S. will be able to abide by agreements it made with Iraqis.

In a White House interview with The Associated Press, Obama also said he believes Iraqis do not want to return to spiraling violence of past years but added that he has not seen sufficient reconciliation among Iraq's political factions.

He also praised U.S. commanders for handing over security to Iraqis in cities and urban areas this week.

Biden arrived as violence flared for another day in the Iraqi capital, with bombings killing at least three people in the Baghdad area. It was the first significant violence since Iraqi forces assumed responsibility for securing cities after U.S. combat troops withdrew from urban areas earlier this week.

Elsewhere, a car bomb near the northern city of Kirkuk killed one man and wounded six more, police said.

Most of the 130,000 American troops in Iraq have pulled back from urban areas to large bases on the outskirts.

Persistent violence has raised concerns about the readiness of Iraqi forces to take over their own security.